JESCA HOOP

Jesca Hoop calls her stunning sophomore album "the first time I've ever really invested in myself." And she means that literally: After recording the nine-track disc in Los Angeles with veteran producer Tony Berg (Michael Penn, Aimee Mann, Nickel Creek), the northern California native packed her bags and decamped for England, where last year she released Hunting My Dress independently to an avalanche of acclaim from both the U.K. press and fellow artists such as Guy Garvey of Elbow. "That was the first time I really took control of my own life," Hoop says, "and had enough faith to put not just my talent but my money toward running a campaign."
Fans of Hoop's 2007 debut, Kismet, already knew about the singer's talent. A favorite of former KCRW tastemaker Nic Harcourt (who regularly featured Hoop on the public-radio station's influential "Morning Becomes Eclectic"), Kismet announced the arrival of a unique new voice, one with a flair (as the Los Angeles Times put it) for "darkly seductive, genre-bending songs that dabble in everything from folk and pop to dub and cabaret." Three years later, Hoop calls Hunting My Dress "a more clarified distillation of what I do as an artist. I'm closer to home in my expression on this record," she continues. "I used less to express more."
Expression is key for Hoop, whose adventurous songwriting and idiosyncratic vocals have earned favorable comparisons to such cutting-edge forbears as Björk, Kate Bush and Joni Mitchell. "Those women inspired a generation, and I'm of that generation," Hoop acknowledges. "I'm trying to get to what's innately mine. My heroes set this example for me. My only aim is to be just like myself."

Miss Erma with Andres Vera

Erma, also known as Miss Erma, creates a sound world that is refreshing and enrapturing. Her melodies are bouncy and bright as she carries you right to the edge, pushes you over and then catches you again. An orchestral twinge is sure to surprise.

Advanced Tickets are available online until 5pm on the day of the show and a reserve of tickets are generally available at the door that night, unless posted on the Starry Plough website, Facebook and Twitter pages as sold out. http://www.starryploughpub.com